Last week Boeing Company successfully completed a parachute drop test of the Crew Space Transportation (CST)-100 spacecraft over a dry lake bed near Alamo, Nevada. The test has been heralded as another step toward commercial transportation that could take people back and forth from low-Earth orbit (where the International Space Station is). Bigelow Aerospace supported Boeing with electronics and the test capsule article. Robert Bigelow, Bigelow Aerospace owner and founder: “This successful test provides further proof that the commercial crew initiative represents the most expeditious, safe and affordable means of getting America flying in space again.”

Mr. Bigelow, billionaire founder of the Budget Suites of America hotel chain and potential space real-estate mogul, is also a customer of Boeing, with plans to use the CST-100 spacecraft for transporting people to and from his expandable modules developed for space habitation. The Bigelow Aerospace website offers the following information about leasing: “Bigelow Aerospace’s clients will be able to lease an entire BA 330 or share space within a module. We will provide a comprehensive turn-key experience including our clients’ transportation and on-orbit needs. Whether you are a sovereign nation developing an astronaut program, a corporation interested in microgravity research, or an individual with a desire to experience space, we can help you achieve your goals.”

The CST-100 can transport up to seven people, or a combination of people and cargo. Boeing has designed the spacecraft to be compatible with a variety of expendable rockets. The company has selected the United Launch Alliance Atlas V launch vehicle for initial CST-100 test flights in 2015-16.

A helicopter lifted the CST-100 crew capsule to about 14,000 feet above the Delamar Dry Lake Bed near Alamo, Nev. A drogue parachute deployment sequence was initiated, to slow the fall, followed by deployment of the main parachute. The capsule descended to a smooth ground landing, cushioned by six inflated air bags. May 2, 2012.

A helicopter lifted the CST-100 crew capsule to about 14,000 feet above the Delamar Dry Lake Bed near Alamo, Nev. A drogue parachute deployment sequence was initiated, to slow the fall, followed by deployment of the main parachute. The capsule descended to a smooth ground landing, cushioned by six inflated air bags. May 2, 2012.

A helicopter lifted the CST-100 crew capsule to about 14,000 feet above the Delamar Dry Lake Bed near Alamo, Nev. A drogue parachute deployment sequence was initiated, to slow the fall, followed by deployment of the main parachute. The capsule descended to a smooth ground landing, cushioned by six inflated air bags. May 2, 2012.